FIFPro warning to players: don't sign for Serbian clubs

HOOFDDORP, Netherlands – The world soccer players' union has warned against signing contracts with Serbian clubs in the forthcoming transfer window, calling the Balkan country "a lawless environment."

FIFPro says its 2016 global survey found 68 percent of all players in Serbia have their salaries delayed, and 89 percent of those who moved to their clubs for a fee "were pressured into the transfer."

Now, FIFPro says, things are getting even worse.

It says Serbia's football association removed the representatives of players from a body that deals with their disputes with the clubs and appointed officials linked to major local teams to its top two positions.

FIFPro general secretary Theo van Seggelen called it "a flagrant violation of the fundamental rights of the professional football players" and asked the association to revoke the decision.